Because Family Health Begins From the Kitchen

Kitchen is where we learn to appreciate taste. Kitchen is where our moms experimented with legumes and lentils so that we, the little ones, can get our much-needed nutrition. Kitchen is where dishes of delight are created to double the joy of a festival or rejoice. Kitchen is where the ideas of family health are thought upon and implemented. Kitchen is where family health begins.

Keeping in view the importance of kitchen in our lives, let’s discuss a few healthy cooking practices that can be observed in kitchens to ensure better family health and wellness.

Have a Fats-free Kitchen [1]

Serve lean meats and non-fatty dairy products to your family. Most of the processed foods contain hidden fats; so limiting their consumption can be a healthy practice. Add nuts, seeds, soy and olives to your healthy food options.

Here’s a list of healthy foods that you may consider while you go shopping:

Prefer to choose low-fat version of foods, including milk, cheese, yoghurt, and dressings.

If you are a non-vegetarian, go for lean meat like chicken breast.

Be a miser when it comes to buying chips, crisps, fast foods, processed meats and pastries.

Purchase more of nuts, vegetables and fruits.

Cooking Practices Do Matter [2]

Follow these simple but important cooking practices to prevent nutrient-loss during cooking:

Do not wash your vegetables after you cut them; they will lose all water-soluble vitamins.

It’s better to scrub vegetables instead of peeling them since the skin holds many vital nutrients and peeling them means losing them.

Prefer steaming over boiling to avoid nutrient loss. And when you boil them, make sure you do not boil them too much; use the right quantity of water for boiling.

Stir-frying is a healthy technique of cooking vegetables for quick cooking and nutrient retention.

Limit the recipes that require butter, deep frying or sautéing in animal fat.

Low Fat Cooking is the Way to Go

Cooking oil plays a very important role in keeping you healthy. Choose a cooking oil rich in unsaturated fatty acids over saturated fats as they are known to improve cardiovascular health and keep your heart healthy.

When it comes to choosing unsaturated fatty acids, olive oil can be one of the best options. According to a research, increasing the extra virgin olive oil consumption by 10 gm/day decreases the risk of cardiovascular diseases and mortality risk by 10% and 7%, respectively. [3]

What makes olive a great cooking oil is its commercial availability in different forms.

Pomace Olive Oil best suits all types of Indian cooking methods, including deep frying and stir frying. Also, the quantity of oil used for cooking is 1/3rd* as compared to other edible oils.

Olive Oil – Extra Lite can be used for conventional tadka and sautéing.

Extra Virgin Olive oil can be used for salad dressings and sautéing vegetables.

Adopt these healthy practices and ensure the health and well-being of your family.